I am so excited about our journey through this series together. This book, Finding Yourself in Transition by Robert Brumet, has been so helpful to me as I find myself, more and more, trusting the process of change. We’ve said from the beginning, that change is inevitable. It’s going to happened, whether it is set in motion by the us or by the Universe. So, the best we can do is find ways to move with the current instead of resisting it. Remember, what we resist, persists.

I might suggest to you, if you want to arrive safely on the “other side” of this transition, do not resist the inevitable. Be willing to be changed. And what better time to move through change than right now. Take a look around you! Our entire world is experiencing change right now. Industries are finding new ways to do business. Families are finding new ways to socialize. Churches and spiritual communities are in the midst of drastic change. So, now is the time to ride the current.

Go with it! Get your change on! You can always blame it on the pandemic!

I can just see it, 15 years from now. Someone will say, “How long have you been a pescatarian?” You’ll say, “15 years, now.” They’ll say, “What caused you to switch?” You’ll say, “Well, back in 2020, there was this pandemic, and it threw me off my “game!” Wait for it – threw me off my game – get it?

Where Are We Now?

We’ve talked a lot about transitions over the past four weeks. Of the many nuggets shared with us by Robert Brumet in his book, we now understand that there is a difference between change and transition.

  • Change that happens external of us may not effect a transition within us.
  • Change may engage the five senses – hear, smell, touch, taste, see.
  • Transition engages the heart… and beyond that, transition touches us at the very core of our Christ being.
  • Did you know that it’s possible to experience change and never experience transition?

Here’s an example:

If someone whom you really don’t care to talk with every day calls you up and says, “Hello, I just called to let you know that I’m never going to call you again.” Most of you would say, “Okay. Thanks.” Now that’s a change, but it is not a transition. You will no longer see their number come up on your phone. And you will not hear their voice again. Using our same example if someone you adore or care deeply about (maybe your spouse or a best friend) calls you up and says, “Hello, I just called to let you know that I’m never going to call you again!” Now, we’ve engaged the heart. Now we experience transition because it touches our heart, mind, and soul. The very core of our being.And we experience an ending. And we wander in the wilderness of our new void.

Chapter 7 Wandering in the Wilderness

We’re picking up today on this series from Chapter 7 of the book. The title of the chapter is “Wandering in the Wilderness.” Through my journey with this material, I have learned that there are several stages…even within the void. I suppose that’s why the author spends so much time on it. I have learned that there is a stage in the void. I’ll call it, Looking Back. It’s where we KNOW, we have just experienced an ending. The marriage has ended. The diagnosis has changed your life forever. You no longer have a job. The person you loved most in this world just died. You KNOW it’s time to move from one coast of the USA to another. You KNOW! You KNOW! You KNOW! That you have just experienced an ending, and things will never be the same. More importantly… YOU will never be the same because THIS… this is transition.

But at the same time we keep looking back. We keep looking over our shoulder. Our focus is still “back there” on the ending. We still smell the smoke of the fire we just came out of. And often, we go looking for things that remind us of the fire. We look at old pictures. Sing the old favorite songs. Drive by the old office. Whatever it is, our focus is behind us on what is now over. This is what happened to the children of Israel as they were escaping the claws of Pharaoh and his army. While running forward, their focus was behind them.

They could hear the army approaching before they reached the Red Sea. They could smell the scent of the horses as they ran to take the Israelites to their death. Soon, they could see Pharaoh and his men behind them… behind them… behind them. Because that was their focus. How long will you keep looking back at the ending? What salvation is there in revisiting what you have left behind? How will you expand and grow unless you’re willing to let it go? When will you call forth from within you, your Moses?

Moses represents our individual ability to connect directly with God. This ability lives in each one of us. Stop looking over your shoulder. Start looking ahead at what’s in front of you, and call forth your direct connection with Source to grant you wisdom and courage to part your Red Sea. The author says, “In the Void, when all normal ‘rules’ have vanished, this inner voice may be all that we have to guide us. And we eventually find that this voice is infinitely more reliable than all the rules that we once used as our guide. And yet the Israelites symbolize a part of ourselves as well, and like them, it may take us a while to learn to heed this inner voice.” Remember, the way out is the way in. Tell your Moses to stretch out his rod, this symbolizes the Christ presence that lives within each of us. It’s time to stretch, to expand, to grow in consciousness. And as you do so, you’ll prepare yourself for the “not then and the not yet.”

The Not Then and the Not Yet

In fact, let’s just call this second stage of the Void, “The Not Then and the Not Yet.” This is the point where you’re able to say, “I’m not where I want to be, but thank God, I’m not where I used to be.” It’s also the place where you face your greatest opportunity for shifting your consciousness. This is where the internal transition gets magnified in your life. This is when your way of thinking and being in the world begins to change. Remember transition happy at the mind and soul level. It touches the very core of our being. Time spent in this stage can be very brief or it could take years. It all depends on how willing you are to allow your conscious way of being to shift from its old patterns to new patterns. It depends on how willing you are to evolve into your next step of enlightenment.

Your path during this stage is guided by your willingness to allow yourself to be changed. The children of Israel reached a place in their journey when the Divine determined that the people who left Egypt as adults would not be the ones to make it to the “new beginning.” So, they wandered in the wilderness, in the Void, until old habit, old ideas, old behaviors, old systems of being, old attitudes literally died off. Of the adults, only Joshua and Caleb would remain as adults who left Egypt. This included 40 years of spinning around as nomads in the desert until they reached the full potential of their expanded consciousness for that time.

How long will you spin in the “Not then and not yet” stage of the Void? How long will you allow old habits, old ideas, and old behaviors to keep you from your new beginning? What needs to die inside you before you produce new fruit. Remember the scripture? “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains one seed, but when it is planted and grows, it brings forth much fruit.” You can come out of this so much bigger, stronger, more powerful than when you went it, but you have got to drop the old order of things, and embrace the new order.

Truth Be Told

We’ll call this final stage of the Void, “Truth Be Told.” There was a point in scripture where the children of Israel journeyed right up to the border of Canaan… their promised land…their new beginning. They could see it. Right there in front of them. They were being transformed by the renewing of their mind. They were so close to all them God had promised them. Moses, representing our direct connection with God, sent 12 spies across the border and into Canaan to spy out the people, the systems in place, and the land. Joshua and Caleb were among the 12 spies.

Now this is what happens when we know the mind of God for our situation, but we bring in our friends and confidants and co-workers and family members to tell us their opinion of what God has already made clear. Have you ever done that? Everything in your soul’s awareness is telling you to move on. All of a sudden you call the Peanut Gallery and say, “I think it’s time for me to move on. What do you think?” And so it goes, that 10 of the spies came back to Moses with a report that emphasized how big, strong, and powerful the people are.

They said, “We look like grasshoppers in our own eyes.” They never said, “We look like grasshoppers to them.” They said, “We look like grasshoppers in our own eyes.” Be very careful who you invite into your inner circle. Be careful about who advises you as you get closer to your new beginning. Remember this is the point where you’ve experienced a major shift in your consciousness. Do not reach back for people who have not evolved to the level where you are and ask for advice! How could they possibly see what Spirit has said for you when they are still living by an old order… an old system of life? You’re on the border of a new beginning. Don’t ask advice from someone who has gotten used to being a nomad.

So, Moses asked Joshua and Caleb what they saw when they spied out the Promised Land. They said, “We came to the land to which you sent us; it flows with milk and honey… Yet the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large.” Joshua and Caleb said here’s the Truth. Here’s what we see through the lens of the Spirit. It’s no reflection on me, and it’s no reflection on them. We just want the truth to be told. Maybe you’re approaching your “Truth Be Told” stage of the Void. Your consciousness has shifted. You’re going. You have your new beginning in sight.

Seek out those who have evolved into higher patterns of thought. Seek out people who spend their time in the light praying and meditating. Listen for your Joshua, Joshua represents the Christ presence. Even Moses (the principle thought that led the people out of Egypt) had to relinquish his leadership to Joshua (a new thought to lead the people into their higher consciousness). Listen only for the Truth during the stage. Let nothing deter you from your new beginning.

May it be so for each one of us today and in the days to come.